Faery: A Guide to the Lore, Magic & World of the Good Folk

by John T. Kruse

CONNECT WITH THE GOOD FOLK AND OPEN YOURSELF TO AMAZING POSSIBILITIES This impressive book is both a folkloric resource and guide to living and working with your magical neighbors. Featuring an expansive look at the world of Faery and the history, behavior, and appearance of the Good Folk, Faery provides detailed and practical advice based on local legends and real encounters. John T. Kruse dives deep into the rich cultural traditions of the British Isles, revealing the symbiotic relationship between humans and faeries. Explore the magic, habits, and culture of the Good Folk. Discover the different types of faeries, how to find them, and what precautions you should take when working with them. Respectful and thorough, this book will enrich your life and teach you how to truly feel the presence of the Good Folk. Includes a foreword by faery expert Morgan Daimler.

Genres: Nonfiction, Witchcraft, Fairies, Spirituality, Magick, Fae

312 pages, Paperback

Published March 8, 2020

Reviews

[John Kruse · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the author, I'll confess to bias and give myself a decent review score. Nevertheless, I very much appreciate everyone's helpful comments.

To respond to Antoinette's concern regarding changelings: I'm aware of the interpretations she mentions, but my approach to faery accounts excludes them. Early on in my writing about this subject, I decided I'd proceed on the basis that the faeries are real and that all accounts should be analysed on that basis. In light of this, finding explanations for the changeling belief on the grounds of illness or disability is excluded, because that's a human explanation for a non-human phenomenon. I didn't want to write folklore so much as faerylore.

I'm sorry Erik thought Wales has been overlooked. It certainly wasn't in my research and the index indicates reference to Welsh evidence on about a third of the pages. The Welsh stories of the tylwyth teg are extremely important and informative. As for jbondandrews- you're right, Beltane is May 1st and my wording shouldn't have implied that Walter Scott was talking about Highlanders! Sorry to all readers for those slips!

Overall, I wanted to offer readers an 'ethnology' of British faeries- and many kind reviews indicate that I partly achieved this. Generations of people have co-existed alongside the faeries, giving us at least 800 years of first hand evidence- and that's what I wanted to try to summarise in the book.

[Antoinette · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book was an interesting compilation of historical views and recorded interactions with Faeries in the British Isles. I did not like that this book didn't add any of the current autistic and/or disabled communities views towards changelings. It took every historical recorded instance as true, and didn't have a critical eye towards the possibility that, even if some of these interactions with the good folk are true, maybe some of them are not.

[Allison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Confession: I picked up this book because Daimler wrote the forward. So I started this book and while it seemed like a fabulous introduction to Faery belief, it didn't offer much new information if you are already familiar with the work of Daimler and Lenihan. By the end, Kruse's work had expanded to the point that I will say it is definitely a book worth reading through, even if you are not looking for a Faery belief introduction. The book is well-researched and it is a fabulous survey of all the information available.

[Erica Detlefs · Rating 4 out of 5]

The most comprehensive and detailed account of the folk that I have ever read, and included so many footnotes for further reading. This is extremely historical based - so if you’re using this book for spiritual or magical purposes, you may find it a bit dense and lacking in spells or rituals for you to replicate. Nevertheless, it contains invaluable information regarding the culture of the folk, and human perception of the folk.

Knocking one star just because it was so dense and the large chunks of text felt difficult to get through. I advise patience with reading this one!

[Bode Cauthon · Rating 4 out of 5]

I’m not sure what exactly I was expecting but it sure wasn’t a fully researched and well documented collection of the myths, tales and folklore of the “wee folk”. Fascinating and deep the reader will come away with a wealth of knowledge and perhaps a touch more respect for their “good neighbours”.

[Ann Merriwether · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a well referenced and well organized treatise about Faeries. The author cites many sources for each themed chapter. There are interesting anecdotes and each topic is meticulous. Somehow it does kind of lose the magic of faerie though for me but overall the scholarship is impressive.

[Tricia Mitchell · Rating 3 out of 5]

A nice guide full of folkloric history and information regarding the fae. Incredibly interesting in some parts, incredibly dull in others. I do so enjoy learning about this subject, but I did find myself falling asleep in the pages here and there. Oops. 3/5 ✨

[Jbondandrews · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well the book was okay though I did have a problem with the fact that it was suggested that Beltane was in midsummer and that Sir Walter Scott was a Highlander, his father was but he was not.

[Sandra · Rating 5 out of 5]

While there may be a few errors in this book, all in all I found it really enjoyable. It is not a witchcraft Faery book--it is a book about the local folk beliefs across the British Isles on what faeries are, what they do and believe, and how they traditionally interacted with humans. From that standpoint, it is a spectacular read and lots of fun to read different anecdotes and superstitions around faeries.

[Erik Pegg · Rating 5 out of 5]

EXCELLENT! Thorough the whole way around. This book had an abundance of knowledge about The Fair Folk in England. The author covered all his bases beginning, middle, and end. I would’ve liked to see more discussion about the individual Fairy Queens, and maybe some talk about the Seelie and Unseelie court in Scotland. They also could’ve mentioned Wales too, but otherwise an excellent work for anyone interested in the subject, whether you have previous knowledge or are a beginner.